» science fiction

SCOTT BRICK PRESENTS: Interviewing Richard Matheson, the Full Voicebank Interview, AudioFile on CHAPTERHOUSE: DUNE, a Shout-out by Slate.com, My Wikipedia Page, and Talking a Little Baseball Or, an audiobook narrator says, “Share the Experience is finally underway, so it’s time for a break!” and takes a short breather to update everyone on what else is going on

Scott — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 18:39:23 +0000

Richard Matheson (R) and Scott (Photo by Richard Parsons)

Greetings everyone, Scott here. To those of you who’ve been reading up on the Share the Experience contest, my thanks for all your input and support. It’s been extraordinarily exciting to see the contest go from just an idea to a done deal. I’m extremely grateful to the Audio Publishers Association, and all our participating publishers/judges. No way this could happen without them. As you may know, this past Wednesday saw us smash a champagne bottle across the bow of the contest, and we’re eagerly awaiting these next few weeks, to see just what kind of response we’ll get. Best of luck to everyone. We’ll post the results here as soon as humanly possible (meaning on or about July 10, as detailed on the contest page).

Now, to all of you who subscribe to this site for our commercial enterprises, the Brick By Brick Audiobooks we’ve been putting out this past year, thank you for your patience as I’ve taken time off from my production schedule to see this 10th year anniversary contest come to life. There are more audiobooks on the way soon, many, many more, and we’ll be getting back to them in the very near future. In the meantime, I thought I’d update you all on some recent events, some web postings I thought you might be interested in.

First off, I got a rare and treasured opportunity recently to interview my absolute favorite author of all time: Richard Matheson. Never heard of him? Crawl out from under your rock! He’s the author of a staggering array of classic tales, many of which have been turned into terrific films: I AM LEGEND, THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING MAN, HELL HOUSE, THE NIGHT STALKER, STIR OF ECHOES, WHAT DREAMS MAY COME, and my personal favorite, SOMEWHERE IN TIME. When you meet him, you can’t help but stare at the man’s head, just marveling at how many amazing tales came out of there, y’know? He also wrote episodes of the original STAR TREK, plus a cool dozen of the best TWILIGHT ZONEs of all time, including the classic William Shatner vehicle, “Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.” Well, I wrote up a print version of the interview for this month’s AudioFile Magazine, who also posted an audio supplement. It’s an edited version of the complete hour-long interview, maybe 15 minutes long, just the first part of what will ultimately be a much longer audio interview that’ll be posted here on this site in the near future. Take a listen and let me know what you think.

Second, I was interviewed by Tracy Pattin of Voicebank recently, who also posted four audio supplements (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4). This was a great deal of fun — most interviews I do are done on the phone, but Tracy stopped by my house and we sat down in the studio, then just proceeded to chat about all sorts of audiobook-related topics. We posted the first part of the interview here on the site when it came out, but if you’re looking for the whole thing, you’ll find all four parts here.

Next, AudioFile also posted a roundtable interview, featuring myself, Simon Vance and Katherine Kellgren, all fellow citizens of the planet Arrakis in the DUNE series. Brian Price conducted this interview to commemorate the final installment in Frank Herbert’s original DUNE saga, CHAPTERHOUSE: DUNE. You can also watch the three of us, as well as the great Euan Morton who plays Paul Atreides, in a video shot that same day. For my fellow DUNE geeks, er, enthusiasts, there’s a rare glimpse of Frank Herbert’s pronunciation notes for the series, unearthed from my ever-expanding DUNE Glossary and shown onscreen for your viewing pleasure.

If you’re a sports fan, you might enjoy a fun interview I did with Ron Kaplan for his website, Ron Kaplan’s Baseball Bookshelf. An extremely knowledgeable baseball fan, Ron sought me out after listening to some of the baseball-themed audiobooks I’ve done these past few years, including biographies of Babe Ruth and Ted Williams, the terrific look of the Oakland Athletics’ visionary leader Billy Bean in MONEYBALL, as well as the expose of Barry Bonds’ shameful exploits in GAME OF SHADOWS, the book that blew the lid off the Balco steroid scandal. Ron’s a very cool guy and a great interviewer. The thing I recall most clearly is not wanting the conversation to end.

(Of course, you can check out all of these and more on my Press page.)

I’ll also point you to Slate.com, where, during a recent discussion (or gabfest, as they like to call them), a listener recommended a few titles I’ve done that’re available on audible.com: THE OMNIVORE’S DILEMMA and UNDER THE BANNER OF HEAVEN. It’s primarily a political discussion, but I appreciate the mention about halfway through and wanted to give hosts Emily Bazelon, John Dickerson, and David Plotz my thanks for the shout-out.

Lastly, if you haven’t seen it yet, I have been graced with a Wikipedia page. Since it’s Wikipedia, we don’t update it, although we try to check it once in a while for accuracy’s sake. All I can say is, if you’re a Wiki person, please be kind.

Okay, that’s about it. I hope you’ll stay tuned to this spot for some cool announcements we’ve got coming up. There’s another charitable venture I’ve got in the works, and it’s something I could actually use a little help with, in terms of advice and suggestions, so I’ll be asking people to respond in a small online poll. I hope you’ll take a few moments and participate if you can, I’m hoping it’ll make a difference in the lives of students across the country.

In the meantime, I’m heading back to the studio. Contest or no, I’ve got five titles to record in June, and only so many hours in the day. As always, thanks for listening.

Scott Brick

SCOTT BRICK PRESENTS: HOUSE OF THE WOLF, VOLUME THREE OF THE PHOENIX LEGACY BY M.K. WREN, ON SALE NOWOr, An Audiobook Narrator Examines His Emotions In The Booth, And Calls Himself A Crybaby In The Process

Scott — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 00:42:23 +0000

Want Scott to narrate this blog to you?

Right-click here to download this Brickcast.

If you have purchased the first two PHOENIX LEGACY books and have not yet received your coupon code for HOUSE OF THE WOLF, please email den@scottbrickpresents.com. Thanks!

Ah, February. Valentine’s Day is near. And guys…? Do you have wives or girlfriends who maybe don’t listen to audiobooks, but you’d like to get them to? Or are you by any chance science fiction fans, but your significant other doesn’t seem to enjoy the genre as much as you do? Then have I got a gift idea for you: this here trilogy, The Legacy of the Phoenix. If there was ever a series well suited to bring new fans into the fold, this is it. And it gets better: it’s 10% off the purchase price if you purchase the entire thing (or if you’ve already purchased the first two volumes and want to finish it off, you’ll get the discount as well; details elsewhere in this blog).

Click here to hear Scott read from HOUSE OF THE WOLF
and buy the digital download

Now, I’m not just being mercenary here, I swear. I say this not just to sell books, but as an utter truth. No lie: I have given this series to at least half a dozen women over the years — girlfriends, girl friends, and even my mother — and they have all, every single one of them, loved it. Know why? Cuz it’s got a really terrific romance at its heart, one that appeals to women of all ages, and if you’re anything like me, it’ll appeal to you as well.

This series grabbed me on an emotional level in a way no other ever has before. A short while back, Election Day in fact, I was standing in line for ninety minutes at my polling place, and figured I’d finish off reading the series to prepare myself to narrate it. I brought Volume Three with me, this month’s selection, HOUSE OF THE WOLF. I was about fifty or so pages from the end, and didn’t really anticipate I’d get to the conclusion, but lo and behold, the line was over a hundred people long, so before I knew it, I was reading the last chapter, surrounded by dozens of people I’d never met before. Now, I’d read this series at least four times before, just for pleasure, so I was intimately familiar with the events in it, especially the ending. Nevertheless, it was like I’d never encountered it before, and even though it ended exactly the same way it had the FIRST four times I’d read it, there it was, nailing me in the guts again. I literally had to fight not to cry in front of all those people. It was extraordinary, really. Made me wonder what I’d be like when I reached that scene in the booth while narrating it.

I’ve been asked many times in various interviews, “Has there ever been a book that was so emotional you started crying, so emotional you just couldn’t get it done?” Well, the answer is yes, there have been occasions where I got choked up to the point where I had to take a timeout, had to get myself together before I could proceed. The time I usually point to is the end of REPORT FROM GROUND ZERO, the book I did about 9/11 about six months after the tragedy. Man, that last page just killed me, such a beautifully written passage that I was blubbering no matter how many times I attempted it. And sure, a handful of other times over the years, great authors have written passages that made it nearly impossible to read them cleanly, without breaking.

Or at least, that’s what I usually tell people. But the truth? I’m a crybaby. At least on the titles I’ve been doing here at Brick by Brick Audiobooks.

Seriously, I’m not just poking fun at myself: for all the times it’s happened over the years, it’s happened a great deal more often since I started doing books for myself. Maybe it’s because I’ve been choosing books close to my heart…? In fact, the amount of times I’ve ever broken down in the studio might be evenly split between the books I’ve done for other publishers in ten years, and these titles I’ve done for myself in the last eight months. It’s the kind of thing that I may have never noticed, had I not been doing this series.

Click here to hear Scott read from HOUSE OF THE WOLF and buy the digital download

I think I first noticed this soggy trend when I did my first BBB title, LORD FOUL’S BANE. The sample file I’ve got up here on the site that you can listen to (click here to listen), the brief snippet of the action, is from my favorite scene in that book, and it wiped me out, its beauty was so sublime that it just knocked me over. Then along came the second book in the series, THE ILLEARTH WAR, and when I hit Covenant’s scene with High Lord Elena at Revelwood, I got wiped out again, and that was only the first time in that book, there were at least three or four others.

I didn’t exactly see a pattern, even when I hit A CHRISTMAS CAROL in November, and one line was so difficult that it didn’t matter how many times I took a timeout, I kept screwing it up. The line came in Stave Four, the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come scene, where Bob Cratchit laments the fate of Tiny Tim. The line goes something like this: “‘My little child,’ said Bob. ‘My little, little child.’” The thing that killed me was that little phrase, that “said Bob” that came right in the middle of everything. I was crying from the get-go, and I couldn’t get my voice under control after the first “My little child,” I couldn’t sound normal immediately after on the “said Bob” part, and then be emotional again so quickly thereafter. I kept choking up, I just couldn’t shake the emotion off. I tried it over and over and over, crying each and every time, until I finally gave up and decided to cheat. I read the line of dialogue straight through, “My little child, my little, little child,” as though the “said Bob” weren’t there, then got myself under control and read those two words separately, then finally edited them in between the appropriate phrases in the sentence. I’ve never had to do that before, not once in ten years. It all goes to show: I’m a wuss, a sucker for a sad line.

(Funny story: those “he said/she said” lines, like the one I had to cheat on, those are called attributions, and you hear that phrase a lot in publishing. It’s pretty simple, it’s taken from the root word “attribute,” to attribute the words to the person who said them, right? Only thing is, I couldn’t get the word right, I used to think the root of the word was “assign,” not “attribute,” you know, as in “to assign the words to the person saying them,” right? So I used to call them “assignations.” Which was wrong. And I said it A LOT, to a lot of different people in this industry. And if you haven’t already gotten the joke, an assignation is another word for a sexual liaison, so when I’d say something like, “Yeah, the biggest challenge to me in the book were the assignations,” man, people looked at me funny.)

Well, as I said, the reason this all hit me is cuz I wept like a freakin’ baby doing this here book, HOUSE OF THE WOLF. The real strengths of this series are its relationships, and whereas the bond between Alexand DeKoven Woolf and his brother Rich was the emphasis of the first volume, this final chapter really focuses on Alexand and his star-crossed lover, Adrien Camine Eliseer. Their relationship is amazingly drawn, literally from the moment Adrien walks onscreen. Far from being a simpering heroine or a two-dimensional love interest, Adrien is dynamic, and really drives the action herself. (Are you listening, guys? Seriously, the women in your life will love this series, but trust me, so will you. You may never agree on who gets the remote, but on this at least, there’ll be accord.)

For those of you wondering how I was when I read the finale here in the studio…? C’mon, haven’t I already admitted to being a pushover? I was a wreck. When these emotional timebomb scenes came up, I broke down like it was the first time I’d read them. I’m sorry, to get choked up after the SIXTH time I read something? Well, I’ll be fair to myself here. As much as I may be a pushover, it’s a far better indication of how terrific an author M.K. Wren is than a sign I’m a wuss or something. Or at least I like to tell myself so.

Click here to hear Scott read from HOUSE OF THE WOLF and buy the digital download

I have a feeling, though, that after you’ve listened to these books for yourself, you’ll be in agreement. Trust me, these scenes will grab you and they won’t let go. I hope you enjoy them, and if so, I hope you’ll write me or post a message here on the site to tell me your thoughts. These books mean a great deal to me, and I’d love to see other people enjoy them the way I do.

And guys, remember: great Valentine’s gift. A Valentine’s gift at 10% off the purchase price when you buy the entire trilogy. And remember, too, that if she doesn’t love them, you can exchange them. Check out last month’s blog for the guarantee.

Well, I’m off, back to the studio. My next book awaits. I got my pages, I got my Kleenex, I’m all set to go.

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!

Thanks for listening,

Scott Brick

SCOTT BRICK PRESENTS: SHADOW OF THE SWAN, VOLUME TWO OF THE PHOENIX LEGACY BY M.K. WREN, ON SALE NOWOr, An Audiobook Narrator Puts His Money Where His Mouth Is By Offering An Iron-Clad Guarantee, Saying, “Don’t Like It? Exchange It!”

Scott — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 04:35:15 +0000

Want Scott to narrate this blog to you?

Right-click here to download this Brickcast.

First off, a word of apology for getting this second volume of THE PHOENIX LEGACY out more than a week late. Unfortunately, we here at SBP had a pretty trying holiday season; there were three deaths among family, friends, and neighbors. When faced with the decision to either show up for people in need or go into the studio so I could get the books out on time, it turns out there wasn’t much of a decision. Nevertheless, we know there are many of you who’ve been waiting patiently, so we’ve been working hard to get this second volume to you ASAP, and here it is. SHADOW OF THE SWAN, on audiobook. Hope you enjoy it.

Click here to hear Scott read from SHADOW OF THE SWAN
and buy the digital download

I’ve been very gratified to see how many of you have responded so favorably to this series, especially when many of you had never heard of it before I announced my publishing schedule a few months ago. Word of mouth is an important thing in our culture, especially among book lovers. Believe me, I understand. But last month’s blog, the ‘This is the best series you’ve never heard of’ entry, seems to have struck a chord with people, and copies have been flying off the shelves. Or rather, MP3s have been flying off the website, or download servers, or what have you.

Still, there were a few people who seemed skeptical, but given their previous support on my THOMAS COVENANT endeavors, I made them all a promise: I told them that if they purchased the first PHOENIX volume and didn’t like it, I’d let them exchange it for another book from my company. I admit, a few people here at SBP looked at me askance when I did this, but I never doubted it was the right thing to do. I mean, people who support this audio line of mine are putting their money where their mouth is, so how could I not do the same?

It took a few weeks, but I’ve now heard back from everyone to whom I made that offer, and you know what? Nobody’s taken me up on it. Not a single one.

Here’s the latest email I received about it; it’s from Christian Walters, a very cool guy who came to the site after hearing about THE CHRONICLES OF THOMAS COVENANT finally coming out on audiobook. “Man, you were right about THE PHOENIX LEGACY book,” says Christian. “I’m not quite done, but I still find myself sitting in the car waiting for a good stopping point, which never comes. I see that the next one is imminent, so that’s a relief. Not only are you an excellent reader, but I see you have outstanding taste in books.” Then came a smiley face, as well as a funny signoff: “If you ever decide to start up a side business recording voicemail answering messages in your Thomas Covenant voice, please let me know.” (Hmmm, I’ll have to give that some thought…)

Well, again, I’ve been so gratified by people’s response to THE PHOENIX LEGACY that I’m going to make everyone this same deal: if you purchase it, listen to it and for whatever reason just can’t stand it, you just let me know and I’ll replace it with another book. Email me and I’ll hook you up. Seriously.

Click here to hear Scott read from SHADOW OF THE SWAN and buy the digital download

This series is so damn good, it’s staggering. I’m not sure if you’ve ever seen any print editions of it, but if so you’ll see some nice praise on the covers. The first two editions had this lovely quote from Jean Auel, of CLAN OF THE CAVE BEAR fame: “A new classic! Has the sweep and power of Asimov’s FOUNDATION TRILOGY.” [Ed. note: Scott narrated the FOUNDATION TRILOGY for Books on Tape: FOUNDATION, FOUNDATION AND EMPIRE, and THE SECOND FOUNDATION.] The most recent print edition says, “Full and satisfying. The society of the far future is superbly extrapolated, the action well-integrated, the characters interesting and idiosyncratic…” This from ASIMOV’S SCIENCE FICTION. Hmmm, given my love of Asimov’s work, it’s no wonder this series appealed to me.

Still, despite these recommendations, even my girlfriend Wendy was just the slightest bit skeptical herself, but rather than offering her any kind of guarantee, I did something a bit sneakier: I hired her to proof all my audiobooks. (Proofing is when someone listens to the recording while following along with the text, making sure I didn’t make any mistakes, and that the final product is word-perfect.) The result? She was quickly and completely hooked. Not a day goes by that she doesn’t bug me to hurry downstairs into my studio to finish the damn thing so she can find out what happens between Alexand and Adrien.

Click here to hear Scott read from SHADOW OF THE SWAN and buy the digital download

So, there you go. I’ll repeat my offer one last time: Buy THE PHOENIX LEGACY. Don’t like it? I’ll replace it at no cost to you.

And that’s by no means the last incentive I’ll be offering. Volume Three of this series, HOUSE OF THE WOLF, will be arriving in just under a month, and if you’ve purchased the first two volumes of the series and want to finish it off with the third, you’ll be receiving a discount for doing so. A similar incentive will also be in place for the Covenant series. More details to come when the final volumes become available.

Okay, it’s time for me to get back to work, but I want to let everyone know what’s coming in just about a week here on Scott Brick Presents. For months I’ve been promising people I’ll be doing a blog on how to get into this wonderful world of audiobook narration, and at long last, it’s finally on its way. My next entry will be all about how to create an audiobook demo, filled with as much wisdom as I can muster on the subject. Hope it helps. See you back here soon.

Thanks for listening,

Scott Brick

SCOTT BRICK PRESENTS: SWORD OF THE LAMB, VOLUME ONE OF THE PHOENIX LEGACY BY M.K. WREN, ON SALE NOWOr, An Audiobook Narrator Learns You Can Never Judge A Book By Its Cover, But It’s Possible To Judge One By Its Title

Scott — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 10:57:29 +0000

Want Scott to narrate this blog to you?

Right click here to download this Brickcast.

Years ago, there was this awesome science fiction bookstore in Santa Monica, A Change of Hobbit. The lady who ran it was pretty surly… she proclaimed herself “The Hobbitch” and it was pretty close to accurate… but man, did she have a jaw-dropping inventory of books. It was always the highlight of my week to head in there and browse. Through her shelves I discovered David Brin, Guy Gavriel Kay and Gene Wolfe, and it was between the stacks in that store that I personally met the man who made me love to read, Roger Zelazny. It was an amazing place, and even now when I drive by their old location, it pains me that they’re not here anymore.

Alas, the day came in the early ’90s when they had to shut their doors. Before I knew it, their amazing selection was rapidly dwindling away to nothing because of an “Everything Must Go” sale. I went in there on one of their last days in business and took a look around. Pretty sparse. There were huge gaps on the shelves, so any hope I’d had of finding titles by my favorite authors pretty much went out the window; it was only the more obscure books that they had at this point, a bunch of stuff by guys I’d never heard of. Yet I told myself this was a good thing: I didn’t want to get into any reading ruts, and the idea of being exposed to new, great authors was exciting.

But how do you know which authors are great when you’ve never heard of any of them…?

Click here to hear Scott read from SWORD OF THE LAMB
and buy the digital download

I decided to just play the association game. If a title struck me for whatever obscure reason, I’d give it a try. And that’s actually how I discovered Dave Wolverton for the first time that day: I saw a copy of ON MY WAY TO PARADISE, and it had the most amazing cover quote by an author I’d ever seen, this one by Orson Scott Card, an author I’ve always been passionate about. Card praised Wolverton relentlessly, saying he was an author to be reckoned with, and given what a huge fan I’ve always been of Card’s work, I knew my chances of enjoying an author that HE enjoyed so much was pretty high. The association game was a pretty safe bet in this case, but I wasn’t satisfied to take only one new book home that day; at the very least I needed two. I started casting my eyes around for another one, any one, any title that seemed to speak to me for whatever ephemeral, even ambiguous reason.

And then I saw it: SWORD OF THE LAMB by M.K. Wren.

I came really close to never picking this book up that day. Frankly, the cover was awful, and despite the old cliché, I really WANTED to judge this book by its cover, that’s how bad it was. But the subtitle of the book hit me: Book One of THE PHOENIX LEGACY. See, the X-Men had long been my favorite comic book, and Phoenix was my favorite X-Man. Seeing as how I was playing the association game, well, how could I turn down an association like that?

Click here to hear Scott read from
SWORD OF THE LAMB
and buy the digital download

Seriously, that’s the only reason I bought it: cuz it had a similar name to a favorite comic book character of mine. Don’t I sound highbrow?

Thing is, there were two other books right next to it, volumes two and three of this same PHOENIX LEGACY. Shouldn’t I pick up those other ones…? I thought to myself.

Nah. How do I know I’ll even like volume one?

I was an idiot.

How so? Cuz about six months later I finally picked up SWORD OF THE LAMB, and was blown away. I loved it right from the beginning – I loved its format, I loved its pathos, I loved its political intrigue, and more than anything else, I loved its characters. The relationship between the two central characters, Alexand DeKoven Woolf and his brother Richard, is one of the greatest I’ve ever read. It is amazingly well-executed, rich in detail and nuance, and unashamedly sentimental. I fell into this book so quickly, so completely, that I was about ten pages away from the end before I realized what a dilemma I faced.

See, I was dying to start the next part, but I hadn’t bought either of the next two volumes. How was I going to learn what happened next?

Thankfully the Hobbitch told me about another science fiction bookstore in LA that day before she closed, and even though they’d been competitors, she urged all of her clients to patronize this other store because it was an independent and deserved our support. So I ran out to this other dealer, Dangerous Visions in Van Nuys, another amazing store that’s sadly gone now, but thankfully, when I checked their shelves under W for Wren, there they were, parts two and three of the Phoenix Legacy. As I pulled them off the shelves, an impulse told me to grab their copy of volume one, as well, even though I already had it. And so began a tradition with me, one I’ll explain in a little bit.

As you might have guessed, I tore through the next two volumes just as quickly as the first, and found myself profoundly moved. THE PHOENIX LEGACY is a huge, sprawling epic of political intrigue in the 33rd Century, in which mankind has witnessed amazing technological advancements, yet its society has devolved into a new kind of feudalism. It’s a tale of class struggles across solar systems, it’s THE WINDS OF WAR set in outer space, it’s A TALE OF TWO CITIES meets DUNE, it’s… it’s its own unique creation, a gem that most people, even most science fiction fans, don’t know about.

I’ve asked myself why this is, why this gem exists in bookstores everywhere but has largely gone ignored, but it defies explanation. Maybe it’s because of those damn covers; they really were bad. (Come to find out those were re-issue covers: the first ones were even WORSE!) But hey, lots of authors have survived bad covers. Look at Orson Scott Card’s ENDER’S GAME and SPEAKER FOR THE DEAD. Talk about having nothing whatsoever to do with the stories themselves. And that’s not even getting into his earlier books like THE WORTHING CHRONICLE or CAPITOL.

To be honest, in doing some research on M.K. Wren, I may have found the reason some people haven’t heard of her science fiction series: it’s because the majority of the work she’d done previously had been mysteries. Having worked extensively in both bookstores and the publishing industry, I can tell you there’s an inherent distrust of authors who change genres, tons of resistance among fans and publishers alike. Even Stephen King has run into opposition when he wanted to write outside of his own genre. Who knows, maybe people didn’t pay enough attention to THE PHOENIX LEGACY because its author was a transplant to the genre…? It’s just a guess, but it’s as good as any other, I suppose.

Whatever the reason, I can tell you this with absolute conviction: whoever didn’t pay enough attention to this series has suffered for that decision. THE PHOENIX LEGACY is an amazing saga, and people are lessened for not having read it.

Every once in a while, I’ll run across people who’ve not only read it, but their response has been exactly like mine: like me, they’ll pick up stray volumes of the series, any volume they happen across on bookstore shelves, even if they already own a copy. And once they’ve amassed a complete trilogy among these extras, they give them away as gifts. I’ve done that multiple times, and the people I’ve given them to have always loved them. I’ve turned family members onto this series, I’ve turned girlfriends onto it, I once even turned my pastor onto THE PHOENIX LEGACY. Women especially dig it, I think because it’s got a great romance at its heart. Trust me, if you’re looking for good sci-fi, if you’re looking to discover new, great authors, or if you’re looking for a new series, a nice big piece of literature you can really sink your teeth into, then you’ve come to the right place.

Anyway, you’ve heard this often enough from me: I love this book, and I hope you will too! Now it’s time for me to put up or shut up. (Hmmm, a guy who talks for a living, I don’t think shutting up will be much of an option here, so I’ll put up instead.) Here it is, just in time for the holidays. Wanna give that science fiction fan in your life a great new series they’re sure to love? Then start them off with THE PHOENIX LEGACY, available for download right this very minute.

Click here to hear Scott read from SWORD OF THE LAMB
and buy the digital download

And for those of you who already love this series, you should be aware of a really cool bonus feature I’m proud to be able to present: an in-depth interview with the author, M.K. Wren, her first in years. The interview is scheduled to take place this coming month, so we’ll have it available as a free download soon thereafter. In it, she’ll talk about this trilogy, her other works, and what might be in store for the future of this series. Talking with her on the phone the other day was a real thrill, and she couldn’t have been lovelier. She’s extremely excited to see this series hit audio, so look forward to a fun and lively conversation.

You know, looking back on that last day at A Change of Hobbit, I walked away with two books, by two authors I’d never heard of before, M.K. Wren and Dave Wolverton, and they both wound up being amazing. Man, I was two for two that day! I should’ve grabbed an armful of titles.

And if you’re wondering about the possibility of seeing Mr. Wolverton’s work available on audio from this here website in the not-too-distant future, all I can say is, keep your eyes on this blog.

Thanks for listening,

Scott Brick

DragonCon, DragonCon, DragonCon — $5 off Scott Brick’s Brick By Brick Audiobooks for DragonCon!Or, how an audiobook narrator soothes the pain of missing out on the world’s coolest science fiction convention

Scott — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 18:41:17 +0000

Want Scott to narrate this blog to you?
Right click here to download this Brickcast.

If you’re a huge fan of science fiction and fantasy, like myself, then you realize a trip to Atlanta this weekend for Dragon*Con is like a pilgrim’s journey to Mecca: it’s the Be-All and the End-All of sf/fantasy fandom. It’s an amazing event that features everything you could ask for: authors, celebrities, a fully-stocked dealers’ room, and even a film festival jam-packed with genre films of all lengths and sizes, an amazing conglomeration that must be seen to be believed.

A film I worked on this past year, THE DELIVERY, written and directed by Stefan Rudnicki and Gabrielle DeCuir, will be screening twice during the film festival. One of the screenings will also feature a Q&A afterward, the subject being how to bring the world of science fiction alive through audiobooks. I was supposed to be there this weekend to attend the screenings, take part in the panel discussion, and be on hand to help promote my new audiobook line’s debut series, The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant by Stephen R. Donaldson (which you can read about right here for LORD FOUL’S BANE and then over here for FATAL REVENANT). I was so looking forward to sharing memories and stories with other longtime fans out there, so looking forward to getting lightheaded gazing at the vast array of memorabilia for sale in the dealers’ room, so looking forward to the intoxication of full immersion into my favorite genres, but alas, it is not to be. Schedule commitments have kept me grounded this weekend, but my loss might just be your gain.

My business partner, Richard Parsons, and I were planning on handing out postcards at the convention, with a special $5 off coupon applicable to any of the books in the Thomas Covenant series for attendees of Dragon*Con. Well, just because I can’t make the con doesn’t mean this coupon should go to waste. So, in honor of the great event, I’m offering anyone who wants it a coupon for $5 off the purchase price of each volume in the Thomas Covenant saga thus far from my website, said coupon code valid for a week after the close of the event. When you click through to the purchase page from scottbrickpresents.com, plug in the code “dragoncon2008,” all one word and lowercase, and you’ll see your purchase price discounted. Just my way of saying thank you for the constant support I’ve received from my brethren in science fiction/fantasy fandom. Hope you all enjoy it.

(Mr. Admin says: The coupon will go live on Thursday, August 28; if it doesn’t work when you try it, please try again a few hours later. Thanks!)

And if you’re attending Dragon*Con or will be in the Atlanta area, I’d also like to encourage you to attend either of the screenings during the film festival. THE DELIVERY was a terrific project to work on, and features a number of great actors and authors: Harlan Ellison, Orson Scott Card, Michael York, John Rubinstein, Efram Zimbalist, Jr. and Stephanie Zimbalist, just to name a few. All in all, there are nearly twenty people who’ve narrated audiobooks who make appearances in the film, myself included. (Actually, I play one of the instigators, a real fun role named “Scotty.” You’d think they wrote it for me.) My dear friends Stefan Rudnicki and Gabrielle DeCuir, the people who gave me my first job in the audiobook business as well as the amazing talents behind Orson Scott Card’s “Ender” series on audio, created this film from scratch and did a lovely job of it.

Check out the DELIVERY trailer here on YouTube, then stop by Dragon*Con for the two screenings, the first at 11:30am and then again at 7:00PM, on Sunday, August 30^th. You can get more information about the entire film festival here on Dragon*Con’s website.

And I hope you’ll check back here in the next few weeks. I’ve got two blogs coming up that have been a long time in the making. First up will be a bit of advice on how to break into the business of audiobook narration, a question I’m asked about constantly and would love to help people with. Basically you’ll have to make a demo, and my upcoming blog will help you do that. I’ve also got a very important announcement, a list of upcoming titles that will soon be available for download here at scottbrickpresents.com.

In the meantime, I hope you’ll excuse me. I’ve got two titles to finish up for Tantor Media, both science fiction titles by the giant of the medium, Frank Herbert. The first one is DRAGON IN THE SEA, and the next one will be WHITE PLAGUE, terrific examples of just how amazing a writer this man was, even when he wasn’t playing in the DUNE sandbox. (Like what I did with that? Huh? See what I did? Dune… SANDbox? Wink-wink, nudge-nudge. No joke too old, no bit too cheap.)

Thanks for listening,

Scott Brick

» science fiction

SCOTT BRICK PRESENTS: HOUSE OF THE WOLF, VOLUME THREE OF THE PHOENIX LEGACY BY M.K. WREN, ON SALE NOWOr, An Audiobook Narrator Examines His Emotions In The Booth, And Calls Himself A Crybaby In The Process

SCOTT BRICK PRESENTS: SHADOW OF THE SWAN, VOLUME TWO OF THE PHOENIX LEGACY BY M.K. WREN, ON SALE NOWOr, An Audiobook Narrator Puts His Money Where His Mouth Is By Offering An Iron-Clad Guarantee, Saying, “Don’t Like It? Exchange It!”

SCOTT BRICK PRESENTS: SWORD OF THE LAMB, VOLUME ONE OF THE PHOENIX LEGACY BY M.K. WREN, ON SALE NOWOr, An Audiobook Narrator Learns You Can Never Judge A Book By Its Cover, But It’s Possible To Judge One By Its Title

Dragon*Con, Dragon*Con, Dragon*Con — $5 off Scott Brick’s Brick By Brick Audiobooks for Dragon*Con!Or, how an audiobook narrator soothes the pain of missing out on the world’s coolest science fiction convention

DragonCon, DragonCon, DragonCon — $5 off Scott Brick’s Brick By Brick Audiobooks for DragonCon!Or, how an audiobook narrator soothes the pain of missing out on the world’s coolest science fiction convention